Although it might have ended last year with a bang, the local real estate market began 2010 with a whimper.

City begins setting rules for urban gardening
Urban gardening efforts in Binghampton have prompted city officials to consider revising proposed land use ordinances that could stymie the greening of Memphis.
After months of silence, Willie Herenton is back.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state of Tennessee are taking the city of Memphis to federal court.
Memphis City Council members are scheduled to vote today on a use variance for an assisted living center at Lamar and Central avenues.
4670 E. Shelby Drive, Memphis, TN 38118, Permit Amount: $1.6 Million -
NuVasive Inc. has filed a $1.6 million permit application with the city-county Office of Construction Code Enforcement to renovate its building at 4670 E. Shelby Drive in the Oakhaven/Village Parkway area.
The Memphis City Council is set to meet today at 3:30 p.m. at City Hall, 125 N. Main St. Click on the icon for a full agenda.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) – Two years after a state law went into effect to penalize employers of undocumented workers, only one business has been formally charged.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - University of Tennessee economists say it likely will take another two years for the state's economy to recover fully from the recession.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Tennessee House is set to vote on whether to turn back Gov. Phil Bredesen's veto of a bill to limit authority for requiring calorie counts on restaurant menus.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
GENEVA (AP) - The number of international patent filings dropped last year for the first time since 1978 as companies hit by the global economic downturn sought fewer new protections on their intellectual property, the U.N. said Monday.
NEW YORK (AP) - CVS Caremark Corp., one of the nation's biggest drugstore operators, said Monday its profit rose 11 percent in the fourth quarter as results improved for its pharmacy benefits management business.
NEW YORK (AP) - John Thain is getting a second chance.